1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates generally to electrosurgical instruments and, more particularly, to an electrosurgical pencil having a plurality of hand-accessible variable controls.
2. Background of Related Art
Electrosurgical instruments have become widely used by surgeons in recent years. Accordingly, a need has developed for equipment and instruments which are easy to handle, are reliable and are safe in an operating environment. By and large, most electrosurgical instruments are hand-held instruments, e.g., an electrosurgical pencil, which transfer radio-frequency (RF) electrical energy to a tissue site. The electrosurgical energy is returned to the electrosurgical source via a return electrode pad positioned under a patient (i.e., a monopolar system configuration) or a smaller return electrode positionable in bodily contact with or immediately adjacent to the surgical site (i.e., a bipolar system configuration). The waveforms produced by the RF source yield a predetermined electrosurgical effect known generally as electrosurgical cutting and fulguration.
In particular, electrosurgical fulguration includes the application of electric spark to biological tissue, for example, human flesh or the tissue of internal organs, without significant cutting. The spark is produced by bursts of radio-frequency electrical energy generated from an appropriate electrosurgical generator. Coagulation is defined as a process of desiccating tissue wherein the tissue cells are ruptured and dehydrated/dried. Electrosurgical cutting/dissecting, on the other hand, includes applying an electrical spark to tissue in order to produce a cutting, dissecting and/or dividing effect. Blending includes the function of cutting/dissecting combined with the production of a hemostasis effect. Meanwhile, sealing/hemostasis is defined as the process of liquefying the collagen in the tissue so that it forms into a fused mass.
As used herein the term “electrosurgical pencil” is intended to include instruments which have a handpiece which is attached to an active electrode and which is used to cauterize, coagulate and/or cut tissue. Typically, the electrosurgical pencil may be operated by a handswitch or a foot switch. The active electrode is an electrically conducting element which is usually elongated and may be in the form of a thin flat blade with a pointed or rounded distal end. Alternatively, the active electrode may include an elongated narrow cylindrical needle which is solid or hollow with a flat, rounded, pointed or slanted distal end. Typically electrodes of this sort are known in the art as “blade”, “loop” or “snare”, “needle” or “ball” electrodes.
As mentioned above, the handpiece of the electrosurgical pencil is connected to a suitable electrosurgical energy source (i.e., generator) which produces the radio-frequency electrical energy necessary for the operation of the electrosurgical pencil. In general, when an operation is performed on a patient with an electrosurgical pencil, electrical energy from the electrosurgical generator is conducted through the active electrode to the tissue at the site of the operation and then through the patient to a return electrode. The return electrode is typically placed at a convenient place on the patient's body and is attached to the generator by a conductive material. Typically, the surgeon activates the controls on the electrosurgical pencil to select the modes/waveforms to achieve a desired surgical effect. Typically, the “modes” relate to the various electrical waveforms, e.g., a cutting waveform has a tendency to cut tissue, a coagulating wave form has a tendency to coagulate tissue and a blend wave form is somewhere between a cut and coagulate wave from. The power or energy parameters are typically controlled from outside the sterile field which requires an intermediary like a circulating nurse to make such adjustment.
A typical electrosurgical generator has numerous controls for selecting an electrosurgical output. For example, the surgeon can select various surgical “modes” to treat tissue: cut, blend (blend levels 1–3), low cut, desiccate, fulgurate, spray, etc. The surgeon also has the option of selecting a range of power settings typically ranging from 1–300 W. As can be appreciated, this gives the surgeon a great deal of variety when treating tissue. However, so many options also tend to complicate simple surgical procedures and may lead to confusion. Moreover, surgeons typically follow preset control parameters and stay within known modes and power settings. Therefore, there exists a need to allow the surgeon to selectively control and easily select and regulate the various modes and power settings utilizing simple and ergonomically friendly controls associated with the electrosurgical pencil.
Existing electrosurgical instrument systems allow the surgeon to change between two pre-configured settings (i.e., coagulation and cutting) via two discrete switches disposed on the electrosurgical pencil itself. Other electrosurgical instrument systems allow the surgeon to increment the power applied when the coagulating or cutting switch of the instrument is depressed by adjusting or closing a switch on the electrosurgical generator. The surgeon then needs to visually verify the change in the power being applied by looking at various displays and/or meters on the electrosurgical generator. In other words, all of the adjustments to the electrosurgical instrument and parameters being monitored during the use of the electrosurgical instrument are typically located on the electrosurgical generator. As such, the surgeon must continually visually monitor the electrosurgical generator during the surgical procedure.
Accordingly, the need exists for electrosurgical instruments which do not require the surgeon to continually monitor the electrosurgical generator during the surgical procedure. In addition, the need exists for electrosurgical instruments whose power output can be adjusted without the surgeon having to turn his vision away from the operating site and toward the electrosurgical generator.